Rise of RoboZ Chpt8 UPDATE
by White-Jet
Summary: The origin of Bust A Groove, seen through Heat's eyes. The story mostly revolves around his best friend, Devo. Chpt8 is now up. As some of you might've read, I'm putting in new chapters. Please R&R.
1. Bad Day

~ 1 ~ Bad Day  
  
This is becoming one wierd morning. I was getting ready for a race and my motorcycle and race car keys mysteriously disappeared. I looked all over the house for them worried that I might be late to the race track when Jester's cat scream sounded along with sick-to-the-stomach Jester herself as I felt her hit my back like a bullet and cling onto me, shaking from head to toe, yowling. I then heard noises behind me. Something like a robotic movement with footsteps along with it. I turned around and found a husky size, tin statue of a golden retriever. At first I thought the kids next door were playing tricks on me. I reached for the keys only to hear the statue growl and bare it's iron teeth, forcing me to yank my hand back before it got snapped off.  
  
What an embarrassment, late to a race because a robotic mutt stole my keys! I can imagine my pit crew on the floor, laughing until they cried because of the excuse I'm making. But one movement towards the dog, and he'll bite my hand off. I figured, the only way to get to the dog was taunting him with something.  
  
I went into the kitchen to get something fleshy for that dog and came back with a raw drumstick. I waved it in the dogs face hoping he'd drop the keys and stand up begging for it. He begged for it, all right. More like hesitated. I thought I'd get him for sure, but what I got was the bottom half of a bone (I think you might know what happened to the rest of the drumstick). Along side burning my toast in a broken toaster and cleaning up Jester's vomit from the flambe she stole last night (And I swear I won't let her try again), this was one of the worst.  
  
Okay, that was dumb, I thought to myself as I threw the drumstick behind me, there's got to be a way to get that dog to give up my keys! I don't have the nerves to drag in poor and sick Jester to drive the dog to drop the keys and chase it (She's already been through the hell of getting here with that dog chasing her as it is), and I don't want to use my favorite baseball because I went through the trouble of buying an autographed one and I don't want to go though the trouble of replacing it.  
  
Maybe asking the dog to drop the keys would be better. I just hope the dog's housebroken.  
  
"I'm late for work, give me the keys!" I said. The dog barely budged. I know that dog understands some of what I'm saying!  
  
"I mean it! Give me the keys before I'll force you to!" I shouted, frustrated. The dog only laughed and ran out of the house with my keys. I blew my stack and chased him down up half the block before I managed to grab him and force my way into his mouth, trying to get the keys out.  
  
Suddenly, out of nowhere, I heard a whistle and someone shouting.  
  
"Fido! Drop it!" said a voice. The dog's ears shot up, dropped the keys and ran over me heading four and a half blocks towards a house with a garage next to it.  
  
"I'm terribly sorry for the trouble my dog caused ya, young man." the voice said, "the kids next door must've tampered with his manual controls again."  
  
Yeah right. I'm late for the race because of burnt toasts, messy floors and some stupid dog and the only thing I get from his owner is an apology, I thought as I laid on a flat Jester with a splitting headache and pawprints up my face, why don't you apologies by driving me to a hospital at least?!  
  
"Oh, I see you met Dr. Finchit." said a voice. I sat up and saw Frida in her school uniform stooping over and looking at me. The name "Dr. Finchit" caught my attention.  
  
"Dr. Finchit?" I said, "You don't mean Dr. Robert K. Finchit, America's greatest techinition, do you?"  
  
"That's right," she said, "his son goes to my school. They moved here almost a year ago as part of Dr. Finchit's new job. His son is one determined kid. He works hard in his automachanics class to be just like his father."  
  
America's greatest techinition here in Japan. I think I just found out why half the neighbors were boasting more about his great career than mine last night.  
  
"Hey, you'd better get going, before you're late." Frida said, cutting me out of my thoughts. I just realized I had race today and ran off without saying anymore.  
  
I got to the track to find the pit crew still working on the car. I sighed with relief, knowing that I got here on time and I won't have to use the old "bad morning" excuse. A proud racer like me can't really get away even if the excuse was true.  
  
While waiting for the race to start, I decided to walk around and look at the other racer's pit crew to see how their doing. For once, I'm acutally enjoying how Zack bosses his pit crew around. It's like he's hesitating that he'll be late of they don't finish in time. Thier fastest was no less than an hour. That's telling me he's still trying to get even for all the wins I stole off him.  
  
I came over to Zack's pit crew, and watching from a far distance, they don't seem to be doing much, it's like they already finished. The pit crew were sitting in a circle as if surrounding a camp fire on a camping trip.  
  
"I don't care if Zack puts him down," said an australian voice, "when your son graduates High School, you have to beckon him to join this crew!"  
  
"Don't worry," said a standard voice, "I will. It's to no suprise that he'll be able to work with his dad in preparing Zack for his biggest race ever."  
  
"What's going on here?!" boomed an annoying voice, Zack rushed in like a cheetah and began to pound everylast one of them until they were on their feet and out of sight. Zack grabbed one of them, keeping him from escaping.  
  
"Talkin' about your family again, aye, Finshit?!" Zack spat in the guys face, "Your yappin's keepin' my pit crew from doing their job! The race is in an hour! We don't want to hear your family story! Now get back to work or I'll make sure I find your son and give him the same beattin' as you are!" With that, he shoves the guy to the ground as he struggled to his feet and ran off.  
  
Finchit's kid is going to work for him?! What good'll that do?! It'll only turn the kid into what Finchit's going to be if he doesn't work hard. I walked back to the track, wondering why Finchit would put his own kid on a job that would make his life more misrable that the one his pop's got.  
  
I soon forgot about Finchit's kid when we started the race. I figured a good race would take my mind off the whole subject. Twenty-four laps later, the subject came back, haunting me like a ghost. Attempting to either ignore the subject or find a solution to the subject kept screwing me up while my car continued to lack and speed up. The announcer called it the "half full, half empty" move.  
  
I was able to win the race. Nothing get's past a racer, not even a mix between finding help or ignoring the problem. After a brief celebration at Sushi Planet (For the 35th time _), I returned home, holding Jester in my arms feeling like going into one of my favorite dance clubs. But first, a nice relaxing hot bath. After going through a lot of hell this morning and on the track, a long, stress relieving rest in the hot tub will help take my mind off everything except the performance tonight.  
  
This was my usual routine on Saturday during race time. A good breakfast (That was completely ruined), a good meal for Jester (Who had to be taken down to the vet for a checkup from the mess she made on the floor that was worse than her hairballs and may end up having to take vitamens in her catfood), a narrow race (That I nearly lost because of Zack's desprite attempts to win), a nice, long bath and a long night of dancing really takes up the whole day.  
  
After a good wash down, I stepped into the hot tub as the heat of the water took away the tempeture of the cold water I threw on me to wash the soap off. A long, relaxing rest in the hot tub was the only thing that would take my mind off things that bothered me throughout the whole day. All the hell I went through this morning, the hesitation of Zack trying to beat the pants off me... only a relaxing bath would take my mind off everything.  
  
I walked into the bedroom after I finished relaxing in the tub and put on my freshly clean, white jumpsuit with fire patterns on the arms and legs along with a red beeny with an "F" on the front of it and my usual racing gloves.  
  
"Look out people, the feverous breakdancer is ready to roll!" I shouted as I headed out of the house and onto my motorcycle. Jester attempted to follow me, but I pushed her back inside. The vet said she wasn't suppose to be out while she was still sick. I was hoping to take her with me to "Funky Fred's Dance Club and Karioke Bar" like I would every Saturday, but this Saturday, she had to sit out. The crowd's not going to be too happy.  
  
I walked towards the enterance of the bar, stretching and flexing a few muscles. I was about to walk in when I felt something rubbing against my legs. I looked down to find Jester rubbing her furry body against my legs.  
  
"Jester!" I shouted, hauling her off the ground, "What are you doing here?! I thought I told y..." I stopped when I realized this wasn't Jester. It was another Calico similar to Jester, except with a white head and body and a black cheek instead of a black head and body and a white cheek. There was a blue collar on the cat's neck marked "Ryo-Chan". That was an unusual name to give to a female. And she somehow took a liking to me, so I decided to take her in with me.  
  
Half the night passed, and four songs had been played on the turntables. As I was feeling myself break into a sweat from dancing, I saw Ryo-Chan jump onto one of the table, dancing the same way Jester did (I haven't told you yet, but Jester dances like a human stripper and the crowd loves her). This club is really raising the roof. I was doing fine until the thought came back to me.  
  
Argh! Not now! I groaned, trying to do a windmill. I don't care if it came to me in a dream, I don't want it to interupt my performance! My pit crew warned me about sneaking over to other racers to see how their pit crew was doing. This must be one of the reasons why. I can't stop thinking about how Finchit is going to stand seeing his own son working for a person who work his pit crew like slaves.  
  
I've watched how Zack's rage get's out of control. Once I win, the next time he re-enters, he pushes his pit crew harder until he has them working without rest. It's going to be hard for the kid to go through the same torture as the rest of Zack's pit crew were. Just seeing Zack pound his pit crew to keep them working makes me want to walk up to him and punch him square in the face and give him a taste of what it feels like when someone decides to treat him like a slave.  
  
Feeling a bit out of it, I got up and headed to one of the counters and ordered a glass of water. I wasn't in the mood to get plastered tonight.  
  
"This wasn't what I had in mind." said a nervous voice. I looked towards one of the tables to see Comet, Frida's younger sister sitting in front of what looked like a blonde kid in a blue, black and violet king's costume (Minus the crown). It looks like Comet convinced him to sneak out of the house with his father's ID.  
  
"It'll be fun!" Comet squeeled, "I wanna see how good you can dance!"  
  
"But Comet, I promised your sister I wouldn't take you to dance clubs that are over 18. I don't want to get my ass kicked again."  
  
"Please, Edgar!? Just this once!? I promise I won't tell Frida you took me."  
  
"Alright, fine."  
  
Edgar? What a stupid name. I bet Frida can come up with a better name for someone who wears a kings costume to a dance club. But then again, Comet hasn't changed out of her glass skirt and roller blades yet. She still looked like she was taking a break from Sushi Planet just to get her boyfriend into more trouble than he sounds.  
  
Mid-Night stuck and the whole club started to heat up. I still wasn't up to going back out onto the dance floor, seeing as I was still sitting on the counter, drinking my third glass of water. Things were going well until...  
  
"Hey, shorty! What where you're stepping!"  
  
From there, a fight suddenly broke out. From the crowd Comet and her blonde boyfriend zipped out of the club, white as a ghost. Ryo-Chan ran off with them, which told me that she belonged to them. I figured it was best I scaddo as well.  
  
I plopped onto the sofa when I got home, hearing the sound of Jester playing "Yahoo Towers" on the internet in my room (I was beginning to wonder who "Cookiepuss" was in on my front page, I wonder if that other user Jester's been typing to on AIM named "Posegato" is Ryo-Chan). It's half past mid-night and I only got past an hour of dancing before the fight broke out. I didn't know what was going on that started the fight but I can tell the kid wasn't going to hear the end of it when Frida get's a phone call saying her sister was out at another dance club, running into people like a klutz.  
  
I figured I'd head to bed early. After all the hell that went on throughout the whole day, I just want to sleep and get my mind off it all. But before I had a chance to even move, I heard an explosion five blocks from my house. I ran out to find smoke coming out of the garage and a bunch of griping. I then saw a van come to a screeching halt near the garage and the window roll down. Ryo-Chan's head popped out, yowling in fear.  
  
"Oh no, not again!" shouted a voice. I saw the same kid who ran out of the club with Comet a few minutes ago. He was driving a blueish-green van with a Toyota logo on the front of the car. The driver's door flew open and both the kid and Ryo-Chan ran into the garage, Ryo-Chan standing a few feet from it. I heard voices from inside. They were faint, but I could somewhat make out what they were saying.  
  
"Pop, that's enough! You're done for tonight. You need to get some rest." said one of the voices.  
  
"I must finish this project. It's so dear to me." said another. I can imagine Finchit locking himself in the garage day and night working madly on that project he was making. Maybe some of Zack's pounding infected his social life.  
  
"But Dad, you're waking up the whole neighborhood with your work. You need to let them sleep. Come on... let's get you to bed."  
  
"I thought I had a better life when I quit Secret X. Now I'm experiencing more hell than when my boss enjoyed terrarizing people with my creations."  
  
"You shouldn't work this hard day and night because Zack's treating you bad. It's not good for your health and the others. Even the kids are starting to get scared of you everytime you come home from a race. Maybe we should see a psycologist. There must be one who can help loosen up your troubles."  
  
"No, I'm fine. I don't need a doctor to help me loosen up. I can take care of myself. Just leave me alone."  
  
Finchit wouldn't know the worst of it...like I did. Infact, I met Zack in person who hated me at first sight. He was so big, one look and I'm trembling with fear. He took that into affect and began to taunt me and called me a scared candle stick in a driver seat. He thinks I'm no good and terrified to win. But I showed him I can kick his ass. I beat the dust out of him and won my first race. Ever since then, he's been pratacing harder and harder and he was getting better. The more he tried to beat me, the more scared I got.  
  
The next day, I was walking down the sidwalk of the city graveyard when I noticed a crowd of people hovering around something. I then heard a prist standing in the middle of the crowd holding a cross in the air.  
  
"Lord, praies the man who had been killed by the hands of his own creation." said the prist, "As it was told by his last words, his former job employees seeked revenge on him by re-programing a creation he had barely finished and therefore, was the first and only one to die before the situation was taken care of. May god send you, Dr. Robert K. Finchit, to a place of peace and happiness that will allow you to forget your pain and sadness and give you a life of love and affection..."  
  
Wait a minute! Did the guy say "Dr. Robert K. Finchit"? The one who was litteraly heaved at by Zack? I was drowned in a sea of confusion as I watched the prist finish his speech and the whole Finchit family hover around the tombstone. I noticed Finchit's kid in the back. He didn't want to see the tombstone until after everyone had left. I began to worry about him, living alone in a big world with no one to take care of him.  
  
I remembered myself going out into the big world just to devote my whole dream to racing. I had no one to take care of me and life out in the big world was so hard, I just wanted to get out of it and return to my childhood life. But now I can't. I've overcome my fears of staying in the big world. Maybe it's time this kid does the same. If only there was someway I can help him get used to it.  
  
After the ceremony, everyone but the kid left for home. I watched the kid walk up to the tombstone and sit there for several hours, looking at the wrench like cross that stood in front of him. He was silent, like he barely had the strength to talk anymore. I wanted to walk up to him and try and calm him down, but instead, I made like everyone else and left. I know that kid might want some time alone before he does anything. 


	2. The New Recruit

~ 2 ~ The New Recruit  
  
Saturday...although I graduated out of High School a long time ago, it's still a good day to enjoy. And for this Saturday, I decided to drive around the city on my motorcycle.  
  
While driving alongside the pier, I noticed a crowd of people forming on the shores and some boats sailing out. Curious, I stopped the motorcycle somewhere on the docks next to an old tug boat and see what was going on. There was a blimp flying by, with "Bungi Jump Contest" scrolling across the screen. And there were three hot-air balloons floating near the blimp as it flew by.  
  
"Bungi jump?" I mumbled to myself, "Ha. Why couldn't they do it on a bridge or something?"  
  
"'Cause if we did, there'd be so many people wanting to see the contest, the bridge might fall apart from the pressure." said a voice. I almost knocked my motorcycle off the dock as I turned around to see Sara, one of my pit crew engineers getting out of the tug boat, holding a harness and a bungi cord. She had light green, waist long hair and wore a red and blue jumpsuit. And she always loves to sneak up on me when I'm not watching.  
  
"You never told me you bungi jump." I said, a little surprised.  
  
"You've never been to the pier much." she grinned, "If you want to see me beat those big shots, my grandfather is willing to let you ride in his boat. That is...if you aren't afraid of the water."  
  
"Hey, just because I hate getting wet doesn't make me a lousey swimmer." I said with a smirk.  
  
An old, wrinkled man stepped out of the tug boat, cackling. His appearance made me cringe slightly.  
  
"You'd better hurry, Sara, or they'll start without you!" the old man yelled joyfully.  
  
The old man drove the boat out to where the other boats were as the people in the hot air balloons began putting on their harnasses. I just sat near the edge of the boat, running my hand through the water and soaking my glove. I was about to look up and find Sara's hot air balloon when I saw a strange water jet pull up ten feet from us. At first, I thought the driver was here to see the contest too...until I saw her take out a sniper gun and aimed it at one of the hot air balloons.  
  
"Um...gramps..." I muttered. I turned around to find him pointing to a red hot air balloon with a picture of Saturn and a rainbow-like ring surrounding it.  
  
"There she is! There's my little grandaughter!" he shouted.  
  
"Gramps!"  
  
"Show them what you're made of!"  
  
"GRAMPS!"  
  
"Eh?" the old man turned to me, his mouth wide open with an ugly grin, "did you say something?"  
  
By then, a shot rang out and hit the basket of the hot air balloon Sara was in. The bullet not only sailed through the basket, but through the balloon as well. I could hear Sara screaming which meant that she also got hit. The whole thing fell into the ocean and began to sink. The people in the boats began to scream and panic, some either driving their boats back to the pier or jumping out of the boat and swimming away from the scene.  
  
As the old man was driving away, I noticed the lop-sided basket sinking into the ocean and Sara sticking out of it, limp and trembling everywhere and there was no telling how long it will take before the choppers show up to find her. She could already be considered missing by the time they show up.  
  
I couldn't let her die and jumped into the water, swimming towards her and grabbing her before she went with the basket. I threw her arm around the back of my neck and held her chin above the water.  
  
Sara was unconscious and she had a wound on her left shoulder. She was completely pale and looked like she wouldn't last long. I began to hesitate as I lightly tapped her cheek, seeing her slowly stir and turn her pale head towards me.  
  
"Heat...?" she murrmurred. I forced a weak grin.  
  
"Like I said," I chuckled softly, "Just because I hate getting wet doesn't mean I'm a lousey swimmer."  
  
A puddle of blood began to form from the wound in her shoulder and seeing it made me tremble.  
  
"Heat...what's wrong...?" Sara murrmurred again. I shook my head and looked at her, forcing another grin, which slightly quivered.  
  
"No...it's nothing." I stuttered. My pit crew doesn't know how hemophoic I can get. Even a papercut can freak me out.  
  
A shadow suddenly loomed over us. Before I had a chance to look up, I heard a shot and blood squirting out of the side of Sara's head. I nearly screamed in shock as I heard Sara screaming in pain. I felt her head hit my shoulder and her body stopped trembling.  
  
"S-Sara?" I said...no response. I touched the side of her blood stained head. It was ice cold. I slowly shook her, hoping she would wake up, but she didn't. I began breathing heavily.  
  
"Sara...Sara NO!" I shouted. I felt like my whole life was going to crash right in front of me. Sara was practically the love of my life...and she was the only one who thought differently than the rest of the pit crew. And here she is, dead in my arms out in the middle of the ocean.  
  
I looked up to see the driver on the water jet, who wore black, baggy pants and sweater and had a mask on her face with pink hair, pull out a cell phone and dial a few numbers.  
  
"This is Diamond..." she said before she eyed me and Sara with an evil (And I mean evil) grin, "Mission accomplished." she closed her cell phone before she looked at me again.  
  
There was no sign of guilt in her eyes, nor did she look like she was guilty. She just smirked and drove off as the rescue choppers showed up.  
  
A week later, at the race track, my agent showed up while the pit crew was busy working on the Heat Wind. He said he had found a replacement for me. And although I was still trying to get over Sara's death, I was willing to take anything that might help me win this race.  
  
"Hey, Edgar! Where are you!?" the agent shouted, looking behind him. I could've sworn I heard that name before.  
  
A 17-year-old kid with long, golden hair tied back in two ribbons and a lavander swirl from his bang to the tip end of his pony tail, wearing the same jumpsuit my pit crew was wearing and a navy blue baseball cap worn backwards ran across the field only to trip on a monkey wrench and fall flat on his face. His appearance caught me by surprise.  
  
That was Finchit's son, the same kid that was with Comet in the dance club. At first, I didn't reconize him because he dyed his hair in a strange way and he was wearing a hat.  
  
"Edgar! Not again!" my agent groaned. The pit crew looked up from their work to see what was going on.  
  
"Hey, who's the kid?" one of them asked. My agent straightened his neck tie and sighed.  
  
"He...is...your replacement." He said. We just looked at him like he was crazy...well...to the pit crew that is....  
  
"Oh well," I sighed, "I just hope he's at least good for something."  
  
"What's the matter, Candle Stick? You don't like your new replacement?" Said an annoying voice. I turned around to see Zack staring at me with that sinister grin on his face.  
  
"What do you want now?" I growled.  
  
"I've already been through hell with Fin'shit' himself. And now it seems it's your turn to suffer." he said in a rather sarcastic way (Incase I haven't told ya yet, Zack always makes fun of Finchit's last name). My fist was throttling with anger. I then grinned back at him.  
  
"Well, at least my replacement knows what to do with a gas tank." I said. Zack gave me the dirtiest stare any offended racer would give me.  
  
"Are you inclining that MY replacement is so stupid, he doesn't know what a gas tank is!?" He spat.  
  
As if on cue...  
  
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT A GAS TANK IS!?" someone shouted. One of the engineers from Zack's pit crew nearly ripped his hat off in front of a drooling, buck-tooth man holding a gas tank, "A GAS TANK IS USED TO MAKE THE CAR GO! NOW POUR IT IN THE CAR!"  
  
I literally fell on my back, laughing my ass off as Zack's face turned beet red.  
  
"How stupid is that replacement of yours!?" I gasped, "I wonder how he ever gets to work if he doesn't know how to put gas in his car!"  
  
"We'll see who's better when I blow dirt into your face with my speed!" Zack yelled, flipping me off before he stomped off.  
  
It was the last lap in the race and Zack was in the lead. I began to wonder if that retard of his does know how to fix a car. Just then, Zack's car came to a sudden halt and I zoomed right past him, seeing it to spin like a top. I couldn't help but laugh at his dumb luck, escpecially when he began chasing his replacement around the track, holding an empty gas tank in the air. His whole back was drenched with gasoline.  
  
I won my next race out of luck. I began to think Finchit's son might be useful afterall, even though he seemed to be the shy, nervous type. I decided to have a talk with him and get to know him better. Unfortunatly being that my whole pit crew were completely over confident, they made so much of a big deal out of the kid's action, he ran off an hour before I won. And they didn't care the least bit that he nearly broke a sweat, helping them with the Heat Wind. They just said he was a klutz and he might've broken a valve or something.  
  
Thinking he might've gone home already, I drove over to Burger Dog to be alone. Even though this was a lousey way to celebrate your victory, it was better than being stuck in the bathroom half the night after eatting sea food.  
  
"Um...are you going to eat that?"  
  
"Huh?" I looked up from my plate to see Hamm standing behind the counter, stareing at me with a worried look on his face, "I thought you were on a diet."  
  
"I can't help it! I'm so hungery, I'd eat anything the costumer doesn't finish!" he whined, "I wish there was someway I can get rid of this annoying fat and have my life back! It's labor, I tell ya!"  
  
"With that much fat, I tend to wonder how you can even dance anymore." said a voice. I looked to the left to see Finchit's kid sitting two stools away from me, eatting a cheeseburger. He was in his king costume, which got me wondering how he had the nerves to go into public wearing that.  
  
Hamm ran over to him and grabbed him by the collar of his costume, shaking him until he was dizzy.  
  
"Please, Devo! You gotta convince Frida to get me off this diet! If I don't eat soon, I'll never know what food is again!" Hamm cried.  
  
"D-Devo?" I said, a bit surprised.  
  
"Ever heard of the band?" I nearly fell off my stool, startled, before turning to see Frida standing behind me, "Edgar's a BIG fan of Devo, so Comet and I decided to call him that. It's a lot better than what his father and teachers originally called him."  
  
She then got off the stool and walked over to Hamm.  
  
"Now listen, you," Frida said, poking his stomach, "If you don't stop eatting junk food for at least a month, you're more likely to explode. So lay off the hamburgers." Hamm looked like he was about to throw a temper tantrum before he ran off into the kitchen, bawling like a kid. I swear, he acts like he can't live five seconds without stuffing his face full of junk food. The three of us couldn't help but laugh as Burger Dog ran after him. 


	3. Aftermath of an Accident

~ 3 ~ Aftermath of an Accident  
  
How could I have been so stupid!? I was no better than my pit crew! Devo wanted to re-check the Heat Wind, thinking there was a problem, and I just told him I can handle it! Not only did my brakes fail to work, but the stirring wheel suddenly popped out right before I crossed the finish line!  
  
Here I am, toppled over in a burning car that had just crashed into a nearby wall, covered from head to toe in third degree burns and boy does it hurt. I was in so much pain, I could barely remember what was going on around me. My sight was blurry and the smoke from the burning car was choking me to death.  
  
I don't know what happened next, nor do I know how long I was out, but when I woke up, I felt like I wasn't hurting at all (Aside from the pounding in my head). At first I thought it was all just a bad nightmare, but when I opened my eyes, I realized I wasn't staring at the roof of my house. Not only that, but I couldn't see anything out of my right eye. I ran my hand through my head and felt something rough covering my hair. It was a bandage.  
  
The doctor told me that I was in no condition to race anymore. What am I suppose to do now that my racing career was over!? Well...at least I'm well enough to leave, and good riddens! The food here was terrible!  
  
As I was walking home, I began to remember what had happened before I passed out. While I was trapped in the car, I saw members of my pit crew pushing Devo around as if they were forcing him to take the rap. I should've told them it was my fault. But what good will it do? They'd still bully Devo until he turns into a nervous wreck.  
  
I've known Devo for five monthes since the day he was hired on my team. Aside from what the pit crew had to say, we both became best friends. I'll bet Devo's locked himself in his house, thinking the whole insident was his fault. I had to see him and get him to calm down if he's freaking out.  
  
I knocked on Devo's door but there was no answer. I noticed Ryo-Chan looking out the window. She had a worried look on her face which told me something was wrong.  
  
Devo was a big fan of imported video games, so I figured he might've gone out to buy some at a game store. I've pratically checked all the game stores in Tokyo, but I couldn't find Devo anywhere. I asked Comet if she had seen Devo and she said he got word that I was out of the hospital and left to find me. It was already past noon and Devo hasn't been back since.  
  
I headed back to his house and knocked on the door again. Still no answer. I was starting to get worried. The last place I haven't checked yet was Burger Dog.  
  
Frida was sitting on the counter when I came in. She had her face buried in her hands and I could hear her sobbing. Hamm was wiping the counters on either side of her. When ever I see Frida and Hamm together, I usually hear them arguing over junk food and dieting plans. Now I know there was was a problem.  
  
I walked over to Frida and placed my hand on her shoulder. She responded by screaming and nearly whacking me with her paint brush.  
  
"Whoa! H-hey! Take it easy! It's just me!" I panicked, sarcastically bracing myself for impact, "Geez! You looked like you've seen a ghost."  
  
I then laughed, which wasn't the best move when I suddely felt a slap across my face. It was so loud, the whole resturant looked up to see where it was coming from. Touching the mark on my cheek, I looked at Frida to see tears streaming down her face.  
  
"Bastard!" she screamed, "how could you do this to him!?"  
  
"Him!? You mean Devo!? But..." I didn't have a chance to finish when Frida shoved me out of the way and darted out of the resturant, "F- Frida!"  
  
I stood there for the next five minutes, staring at the door Frida ran out of. What did I do to Devo that got her upset?  
  
"The poor kid," Hamm mumbled, "for the past week, he's been nothing but a worry wart. He couldn't sleep, he barely ate the pickles off his food and he's been blaming himself for the accident. We keep telling him that it wasn't pratically his fault, that anyone from your pit crew might've caused it, but he wouldn't listen."  
  
"But...but that's not like him," I said, flopping down on one of the stools in front of the counter, "I know my pit crew's been bullying him because they're bigger than he is, but he'd never let anything they said get to him. Devo is a strong person for someone who looks like a nervous wreck."  
  
"He is. But when you crashed, his attitude changed completely. Personally, I think that little sarcasim you pulled when Devo wanted to check the engine was utterly stupid and uncalled for!"  
  
"W-What!? He told you he wanted to re-check the Heat Wind!?"  
  
"Oh yes. He tried to tell the pit crew that you didn't want him to re-check the car, but they wouldn't even listen to him. All they did was point fingers at him and said the whole accident was his fault and that he never should've been hired in the first place."  
  
My god, what've I done!? I know my pit crew were big shots, but I didn't think they were THAT stubborn. I'll bet the only thing they care about are themselves. And they were hand-picked by my own father who almost went bolistic when I said I was going to enter a Formula 1 race. Was this his way of telling me how stupid I was to even consider killing myself on a race track?  
  
I have to calm down before I lose MY cool. Luckily, today was Saturday so I could go to Funky Fred's just to get my mind off the whole thing. They were also holding their annual, month long dance contest that I wouldn't mind joining since dancing was my second biggest hobby. I just hope they have some prize money when I win 'cause I'm going to need it 'til I find a part-time job.  
  
That night, I stepped up to the doors of Funky Fred's, reading the banner they had put up sometime this afternoon when I was looking for Devo. Something about that banner suddenly got my attention. There was something painted on the very bottom of the banner saying "enter at your own risk". I've never seen it there before. Did someone have a heart attack during the last contest?  
  
I walked up to the table where contestents signed up at and asked the man that was sitting behind it, handing out sign-up forms why there was a warning sign painted at the bottom of the banner. The guy looked at me like I was stupid.  
  
"When did you come in, this morning?" he said, as if to annoy me, "Last week when we ran the annual 'Funky Fred's Dance Contest', a contestent was sent to the hospital after having more than his noggins crushed by a human-size hamburger."  
  
"A human-size hamburger!?" I blurted, "Who would make a hamburger that big!?"  
  
"No one, it seemed to have appeared out of nowhere. That wasn't the end of it. Another contestent fainted after being pinned by an autographed picture of an Italian dancer, and another was nearly shot to death by a machine gun that just appeared in his opponent's hands when he turned around. I swear, we must be holding a dance contest for demons."  
  
I gulped slightly. Maybe signing up for this dancing contest wasn't such a good idea, but I got this sudden urge to join. I finally gave in and signed up, praying that I would get a desent opponent that wouldn't mysteriously give me more injuries than the ones I already have.  
  
Before I went in, a 12-year-old girl in a redish striped, oversize sweater and overalls with a toy mouse sticking out of her front pocket ran up to the sign-up stand.  
  
"My guardian let me sign up for a dance contest." she said cheerfully. The man just laughed and handed her a sign-up sheet. I just stared at him and the girl.  
  
"Hey, no one said there was an age limit," the guy said, shrugging, "even a baby can join this. And I wasn't commenting on that woman that just went in earlier wearing a baby suit and holding a rattle."  
  
I shook my head and walked into the dance club. At the enterance, I saw these two strange people in silver alien costumes (Not the ones from the horror movie, more like the big head and eyes kind...only their eyes are yellow instead of black). They were so identical, I couldn't tell them apart.  
  
The two just looked at me as I continued onward. I don't know why, but I could've sworn they looked like real aliens. I must be losing my mind or something.  
  
I had to wait until they called me. Until then, I sat at the counter and ordered something to snack on. While I was sitting at the counter, fiddling with a bowl of nachos, I saw the 12-year-old kid jump onto another stool five feet away from me.  
  
"I want two chillidogs with extra chili on it." she called.  
  
She really must be hungery, I thought to myself while nibbling on the nacho that was sticking out of my mouth. I watched as the girl pulled her toy mouse out of her pocket and lay it on the table. The bartender soon returned with their order. I chuckled slightly and went back to eatting when I heard her laughing.  
  
"Columbo! You weren't supposed to stuff that down in one gulp! You're too small!" she said between laughes. I turned to see what was going on and the nacho that was in my mouth fell right out. That toy mouse was trying to cram a whole chilidog into its mouth. Was it some kind of mechanical toy with a life of its own?  
  
Well, it was finally my turn. I walked towards the dance stage, praying for a normal dancer. When I got onto the dance stage, who else would be on there waiting for me than that annoying rival of mine, Zack.  
  
"I thought you hate dancing." I growled.  
  
"No one said that I'd join for the prize," Zack said with a smirk, "and seeing that you're my opponent, this match will end easily."  
  
"You don't know me very well, do you. I can easily clobber you to death with my break dancing skills."  
  
"We'll see about that, Candlestick!"  
  
Halfway through one of the songs, Zack tried to trip me with his lousey dance steps. What kind of dance style is that, anyway? He isn't keeping up with the beat, his moves are way beyond "god awfully stupid" and he keeps trying to trip me everytime I get the best of him. And no one's making any comments about it. I was so angery, I felt like my fists were on fire.  
  
Wait a minute...THEY ARE ON FIRE! I began to panic, trying to put out the fire on my hands when one of Zack's clumzey moves knocked me off my feet. I fell flat on my back, causing the fire to jump out of my hands and high into the air. The fire did a U-turn in the air and landed right on top of Zack, burning his clothes right off his body. After that, the whole bar was dead silent.  
  
I just sat there, bug eyed and mouth quivering as the whole audience saw Zack butt-naked on the dance floor. Girls were covering their eyes, some cringing, others giggling. Zack covered his crotch and gave me a look that would make Superman tremble with fear.  
  
"Any last words, Candlestick?" He growled. I was completely covered with sweat and I was shaking everywhere.  
  
"Uh...um...Gee...is that a tattoo on your..." I didn't have a chance to finish when Zack jumped towards me. I yelped and jumped off stage screaming, "HELP! I'M BEIN' ATTACKED BY A NUDE FREAK!"  
  
I callapsed near the counter, panting. What the hell just happened? First I survive a car crash, now I start fires!?  
  
I was then yanked off the ground and dropped onto a stool by one of the alien dressed twins. One of them was standing behind the counter, the one that grabbed me was sitting on the counter.  
  
"See, Lala. I told you he was one of them." the one on the counter said.  
  
"S-scuse me?" I stuttered.  
  
"You are one of the many dancers who can use the groove-tron." the one behind the counter said.  
  
"G-Groove-tron?"  
  
"An intergalactic jive power that gives a dancer anything he or she desires. This power was the one that saved you from dying, thus giving you the ability to wield fire at will."  
  
"Right..." I said, slipping off the stool, "Thank you very much for the advice. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go home and take a shower." I tried to walk off when the alien twins grabbed me and dropped me back on the stool.  
  
"You earthlings are so redundent." one of them said.  
  
"You have a lot to learn before we can send you on your way." said the other.  
  
"Give me a break," I said, "Okay, so my fists were on fire. I might've spontainiously combusted or something."  
  
"That might be true, but ask yourself this, earthling. If you were going to 'spontainously combust', why would the fire just leap right out of your hands when you fell?"  
  
I opened my mouth to say something, but nothing came out. The aliens sighed and turned me to the dance floor. There was that girl with the mouse standing next to some 15-year-old kid in a bio-suit and gas mask.  
  
"Watch closely, earthling, and then ask yourself if what you just did was just a coinsidence." they said in a unison.  
  
Yeah, like I had much of a choice, I thought to myself as they had a pretty strong grip on me. During the song, the bio-suited kid pulls out a remote and presses several buttons, causing a human-size canister to drop towards the kid with the mouse. The girl just jumped back, her long pigtails almost standing like spikes.  
  
I looked up at the roof where the canister fell from, but I couldn't find any kind of machine that would drop something that big.  
  
"That's not all, earthling." they said. One of them pointed to the girl who had just gotten up. I almost thought they were refering to the mouse in her pocket.  
  
"Big deal, it's just a mechanical toy...right?" I said. The two gave me the "have you been paying attention" look.  
  
"That 'toy' of hers is 100% cotton." one of them said.  
  
"Not a circuit in its body." said the other. I just gulped and looked at the girl as she and the bio kid continued their dance. By the end of the song, the girl ran around in circles and the kid was nearly buried in a pile of large gumballs.  
  
The manager was ripping out clumps of his hair as if he was afraid the government was going to destroy his contest because of what we were doing. This probably meant he wasn't going to let me enter the final stage of the contest since he saw me burn Zack's clothes off.  
  
Walking home later that night, I began to think maybe having the ability to control fire wasn't such a bad idea. I would've told Devo about this, but then again, he'd probably be jealous. Speaking of Devo, I should check to see if he was home yet. I know I've been out all day at the dance club witnessing what might've been the most bazzarre thing to happen in dancing history and I have yet to see if he was home yet.  
  
But when I got back to the neighborhood, Devo's car still wasn't there. I began to wonder if Ryo-Chan had anything to eat all day, but then again, if she can learn how to dance like a human, I would think she'd also know how to get her own food.  
  
Instead, when I came through the door, I found her curled up on the sofa with Jester who was in the same position, both were asleep. If cats could talk, Ryo-Chan would've told me why she was here and what had happened to Devo. 


	4. Life Safer

~ 4 ~ Life Saver  
  
Devo has been gone all week. Frida and Comet didn't know what happened to him. We were all getting worried. Either something bad has happened to Devo, or he decided to fly back to America and look for another job. That can't be true! Devo would always let one of us know before he does anything, even if he thinks it's too stupid or depressing to even mention.  
  
That afternoon, I sat at the counter in Burger Dog, looking for a part-time job in the newspaper when my cell phone buzzed. I figured it was my pop. For the past two weeks since the accident, I've been ignoring his calls. All he ever does is try to set me up with part-time jobs I couldn't handle. But after spending the whole day looking for one, I could take anything he suggests.  
  
But it wasn't my father. It was the hospital. A contract killer intersepted Devo's van and shot out his front tires, causing him to lose control and crash into a tree. He was in a coma for six days which was the reason why he hadn't been home all week. The doctor told me that Devo was dying and he needed to see me now. I wanted to get Frida and Comet on the phone to tell them to come along, but the doctor told me I had to come alone.  
  
Devo had woken up this morning. But he was barely conscious and he only wanted me to see him (This was before he passed out again, BTW). He couldn't bare to let Frida and Comet see him laying in bed, covered in tubs and wires and bleeding to death. They had already been closer to him during my accident and he didn't want them to feel just as bad as he was.  
  
I was at the hospital an hour later. The doctor escorted me to where Devo was. The sight of him just made me cringe. Devo was put on life support with a bandage around his head and an oxygen mask around his mouth. His breathing was shallow and his heart rate was dwindling.  
  
The doctor said Devo only had five hours left before he dies. I didn't know what to do, except sit in a chair near his bed and stare at him. I tried to fight back the tears, but they just wouldn't hold.  
  
"I'm sorry, there's nothing we can do." the doctor said. I knew he saw me crying.  
  
"Go away." I choked.  
  
"But sir..."  
  
"I SAID, LEAVE ME ALONE!" I screamed, my fists bursting into flames. The doctor gulped and scurried out. Once he was gone, the flames vanished and I threw my head on Devo's bed, my arms wrapped around it.  
  
I can't believe this is happening. First I lose my girlfriend, then my career and now my best friend!? Why is this happening to me!?  
  
When I thought my life wouldn't get any better, something strange happened. The entire hospital went black. It was so dark, I could barely see my hand. The doctors and nurses were running around, panicing and trying to figure out how to get the power back. I heard the door slam, but I couldn't tell which one.  
  
I turned to looked at Devo only to be blinded by a strange light that was surrounding him. The glowing light pratically lit up the room. By the time it stopped, the electricity in the hospital was back on and the door creeked open. I looked at Devo again and every injury he sustained was gone. It was as if he wasn't mangled at all. And his heart rate showed normal.  
  
No one knew what it was that cured Devo. All I could think about was that groove-tron thing those aliens were talking about. But those things are for serious dancers. And I barely see him go to any dance clubs, even if there was one for minors. But then again, that was no reason why he couldn't do it at home. Afterall, he doesn't live in an apartment and the neighborhood isn't exactly the quiet type during some nights.  
  
Well, it doesn't matter what saved him, just seeing him alive and would make me, Frida and Comet a lot happier. But Frida and Comet didn't know Devo nearly died in a car accident and I didn't know how I was going to tell them. I know they'd freak out when they hear he had a near death experience, but it was better than making up some lie and then having my head bitten off when they later find out what really happened.  
  
Next day, Devo finally came home and I decided to pay him a visit. He was a bit shocked to see me, but soon we were the usual brats of the neighborhood. I haven't told Devo about how I was able to set things on fire. I figured I give him time to get back to himself before he sees this strange phenomenon.  
  
Comet ran over to Devo's house later that day. And when I said "ran", I mean it. She didn't even bother to throw off her rollerblades and nearly crashed into the wall the minute she burst through the door. After picking herself up, she glomped Devo and nearly cried, hugging him hard enough that he was barely breathing.  
  
"Oh, Devo! Where've you been!" Comet yelled, pounding his chest and knocking more wind out of him (That is one strong bitch for someone who recently got kiddnapped by thugs).  
  
"Well...I don't know how to say this, but..." I was about to say, but Devo stopped me.  
  
"I just wanted to be by myself for a few days. Sorry I had you worried." Devo said with a strained chuckle.  
  
I guess he was serious about not telling Comet or Frida what really happened to him. Just seeing their pitty was hard enough. But at least I'm glade they're back to normal. Having to hang out with a couple of gloomy teenagers was no fun if you asked me.  
  
I figured they needed sometime to get back together, so I decided to step out and take a walk. But before I reached the door...  
  
"Oh, Heat," Comet said, tapping her fingers together, "You...might not want to go over to our house today."  
  
"Huh? What for?" I asked. Comet gulped and scratched her head.  
  
"Uh...how should I say this...Frida wanted to draw a tiger for her art project at school, but when she was done, that drawing suddenly jumped out of her sketch book and began chasing us."  
  
"You're kidding! Her too!?" I said, jaw hanging. Comet gave me a confused look.  
  
"What...are you talking about?" she asked.  
  
"Um...nothing, nevermind." I said, slipping my shoes on and grabbing the doorknob, "Must be the heat, I'm going to step out and get some air, I'll be back later." and with that, I opened the door and hurried out. 


	5. Spoiled Rotten

~ 5 ~ Spoiled Rotten  
  
What can I say, I'm soft on kids. One time the neighbors across the street hired me to take care of their five-year-old daughter and her baby sister and what do I do? I take them to Frosty's Ice Cream Parlor for ice cream an hour before dinner! Their parents ignored me for two weeks. _;;;  
  
Take my advice, if you want to hire a babysitter, don't ask me. I mean, even Sara isn't stupid enough to trust me with her 10-year-old brother and she pratically let's him get away with everything. What's up with that!?  
  
You're probably wondering why I'm talking about how lousey I am at babysitting. Well, remember in the last chapter when I stepped out for some air? I decided to head into Tokyo and do some window shopping. My stomach soon growled and Burger Dog had been closed for repairs due to a robbery set by Strike and his Notorious gang. Where was a hungry guy like me going to eat?  
  
Where else? "Homebody's Pizza Playpen". The only Pizza Parlor in Tokyo that sets off both Burger Dog and Sushi Planet's highlights, and it's not just because it's the only place overun by cats.  
  
Homebody's Pizza Playpen was the only place where the manager would do anything to stay on top. If they were even 1% below budget, the manager would tear the place down and making it more fancier than it already was. Why I still come here is probably because they would make any pizza, despite what some people say about it (I get a million expressions from some people watching me eat a pepperoni pizza with jalapenos and extra wasabi and that sometimes drives me bonkers _).  
  
As I was heading to the parlor, I heard complaining and turned to see the same 12-year-old from the club last week being dragged out of a candy store by a shoulder long, black haired man in a black business suit. There was a trench coat hanging off his shoulders like a cape and round shades. His hair was tied back in a loose ponytail.  
  
"I can see why Strike wouldn't even think about kidnapping you." The guy grunted as the girl was pratically on her knees, screaming and crying, "Trying to get you to come with me is as rediculous as showing up to work in a clown suit!"  
  
Her mouse jumped on the guy's arm and bit his wrist. He screamed in pain and grabbed it, pulling out a pocket knife.  
  
"Stupid toy!" The guy growled.  
  
"Don't hurt him!" the kid demanded.  
  
"Do as I say and I'll spare him. Otherwise..." he said as he flipped a small blade from the pocket knife. The mouse squeeled as the blade rested on its throat.  
  
I couldn't just stand there and let this guy bully her and walked up to him, grabbing the wrist that was holding the mouse and squeezed it until the guy was screaming in pain from the fire on my palms. He dropped the mouse and the pocket knife and yanked his hand off, covering it as blood seeped through the spaces between his fingers.  
  
"Hey, kid! Who do you think you are, coming here and interupting me like that!?" the guy snapped.  
  
"Oh, my bad," I said sarcatically, "I forgot to knock." I then punched the guy in the face, knocking him to the ground, unconscious.  
  
"WOW! THAT WAS COOL!" the girl shouted. I wasn't sure if she was crying just to annoy him or was really scared out of her mind, "I can't wait to tell Cutter what happened today!"  
  
The girl then runs ahead of me before I had a chance to get her name. I shrugged and continued onward until I saw her running towards Frosty's Ice Cream Parlor.  
  
Oh, well, since it IS hot, I might as well get something to snack on, which meant the pizza would have to wait. I then looked at the girl who was rummaged through her pockets until she pulled them insideout.  
  
"Aw, I never should've spent them at the arcade! Now what'll I do!?" she complained. Normally, I'd ignore this and go in, but I couldn't resist having to spend MY money getting her ice cream. Reluctently, I ended up buying her a strawberry sundae with extra hot fudge. Me? I just got two scoops of chocolate chip and vanilla.  
  
We walked down the sidewalk, eatting ice cream until we came across Homebody's Pizza Playpen, which had so many lights that a person would have to wear shades in order to avoid going blind. The girl ran ahead of me and into the parlor, shouting "CUTTER, I'M HERE!!!"  
  
I walked inside to see her sitting at the counter. A minute later, a 27-year-old guy with blonde hair that reached his waist and was tied back in a loose ponytail ran over to the counter. He wore a light blue sweater, black slacks, a green cape and leather gloves. He also had an X-like scar on both sides of his cheeks.  
  
"Where've you been!? Do you even know what time it is!?" the guy shouted as I took a seat on the stool next to the girl.  
  
"Sorry, Cutter," she said, "I was trying to get to the resturant as fast as I could, but some guy tried to kidnap me." Cutter's eyes widened and his jaw hung open.  
  
"He what!?"  
  
"Yeah, but I'm alright now." she then points to me, "this man saved me! You should've seen him! He walked right up to that mean old bully and punched him in the face." Cutter's eyes went from wide to bug eyed and his jaw almost hit the counter. I can see where this was going to go, and it ain't pretty.  
  
The girl reached over to Cutter, took his jaw and pushed it shut. Cutter shook his head and sighed.  
  
"Well...that was...very brave of him," he said. He then mumbled, "and stupid."  
  
"Hey! It's better than seeing her get dragged across the city by some guy threatening her." I spat. Cutter pretended he didn't hear me.  
  
"Anyway, it's almost lunch time. I've got your cheese pizza ready." Cutter went into the kitchen and later returned with a medium size, cheese pizza. I just sat there, praying she'd eat it, but she just stared at it.  
  
"Hey, are you feeling okay?" Cutter asked. I gulped slightly and straightened the collar of my jumpsuit.  
  
"I'm not hungry," she mumbled. Cutter was panicking...and it showed.  
  
"What!? Are you sick!? Sh-should I call your parents!?" he yelled running back and forth and flayling his arms like an idiot.  
  
"No! I'm not sick," the girl said, pointing to me, "he bought me ice cream before I came here."  
  
Cutter was red in the face and there was steam coming out of his ears. I was now covered in sweat as he turned to me with his fingers wingling, as if he was going to strangle me.  
  
"You BOUGHT her ice cream before lunchr!?" he growled.  
  
"Well...uh...I'm used to eatting later than she does." I gulped, laughing nervously.  
  
"What were you thinking, spoiling her appitite like that!?" My mouth twitched several times before I dropped my head on the counter. Once again, I nearly had my head bitten off by ANOTHER pissed off relative of a child. 


	6. Day at the Carnival

~ 6 ~ A Day at the Carnival  
  
There was a carnival down in the park that had opened up this morning. After the trouble I went through trying to avoid ticking off Cutter, I figured I have a little fun myself. Carnivals happen to be one of my favorite attractions.  
  
But this carnival seemed kinda strange. Their sponsor was a company called Secret X. That name seemed familiar. I remembered Finchit complaining about how bad working for Secret X was. But if it was that bad, why would they be having a carnival out here?  
  
I shrugged and walked in. All the rides and shows in the carnival seemed normal, so it shouldn't be too bad. There were a lot of people in this carnval, and I felt like I was the only one among these people who could start fires. It was best if I DIDN'T start dancing to avoid turning this carnival into a Ramstien concert.  
  
Boy was that a problem. Most of the stands I passed had music blaring and the urge to even tap my foot to the beat was so bad, I sometimes had to pull my beeny over my ears just to ignore it. Of course, having to LOOK through tiny holes in your beeny wasn't such a good idea either and it didn't take me long to realize that when I felt someone run into me and knock me to the ground.  
  
"Don't you know it's a dumb idea to be walking around with a snowcap over your eyes?" said a voice. I sat up and pushed the beeny away from my face to see Cutter's kid stooping over me.  
  
"Does Cutter know your here?" I asked, getting up.  
  
"Know!? He said I can come here!" she giggled, "Cutter's way too busy with the pizzas so he gave me some money and sent me here to occupy myself the rest of the day." She then grabbed my arm and started pulling, "Come on! It's no fun if you're not there with me!"  
  
Well, that was new. Whenever I spoil someone's kid rotten, they'd do anything to keep me from doing it again (Even threaten to sue me, which rarely happens, thank god _). I just hope Cutter doesn't get too peeved when he finds out who his kid's been hanging out with the rest of the day.  
  
After going on half the rides in the carnival, we walked along the gaming stands. The girl was looking at each one, seeming a bit amused.  
  
"So, where to now, Shorty?" I asked. The girl stopped and looked at me.  
  
"Shorty?"  
  
"Well, I didn't quite catch your name and I can't just keep callin' you 'kid'. I hope I'm not offending you in any way."  
  
"You kidding!? That's better than my real name!" she giggled. She then noticed a gypsy tent with a sign saying "Pinky Diamond: Fortune Teller and Palm Reader."  
  
"Ooooh! I want my fortune read!" Shorty squeeled as she ran towards the tent. Fortune telling wasn't exactly my forte so I waited outside for her to finish. 2 hours went by and she still hasn't come out yet. Most fortune tellers take about at least an hour to finish. I was beginning to wonder how much money Shorty paid the fortune teller to make her take this long.  
  
I soon got tired of waiting and walked into the tent. What I saw behind the crystal ball almost shocked me. That pink haired woman who killed Sara was waving her hands over a crystal ball. But instead of wearing black clothing like she was five monthes ago, she was wearing a pink, glittering halter top and pink gypsy pants. There was also a gypsy mask around her face.  
  
Boy, seeing her brought back painful memories. I was so furious, I didn't realize my fist was on fire until the gypsy looked up from the crystal ball to me with calm eyes.  
  
"Now, now," she said calm and mysteriously, "We must not use our groove-trons in this tent. It is very expensive." I shook my head and looked at my burning hand as the flames vanished. Shorty turned her head towards me.  
  
"Is something wrong?" she asked as if she knew I was upset. I tried to keep my cool, despite the fact I was mentally sneering at the gypsy.  
  
"Is this going to take long?" I asked, "it's getting dark outside."  
  
"Not another minute," the gypsy said, "in fact, I was already finished when you came in."  
  
Her "customer" got up and walked past me whispering, "that lady was both boring and creepy." As I turned to leave, I looked back at the gypsy who was resting her chin on the back of her folded hands, giving me that evil grin again as if she was telling me I deserved to suffer emotionally. I growled before walking out.  
  
When I came out, I heard a voice booming over a loud speaker.  
  
"Ladies and gentlemen!" the voice said, "Welcome to the first annual Bust A Groove cometition! Tonight's opponent is an employee at our carnival! A very sexy strip dancer and deadly master of terot cards! Who will be the lucky person to escape her moves alive!?"  
  
Shorty and I looked at each other before following the voice to one of the larger tents and walked inside. The whole place looked like a larger version of a fortune teller tent with a flashing floor and a stand with a spinning pyramid under a sign that read "Pinky Diamond".  
  
Her again, I mumbled to myself, I'll give her a piece of my mind. Unfortunatly, before I had a chance to take up that challange, Shorty grabbed my arm and held me back.  
  
"You don't wanna go up against her," she said, "I heard those who went up against her and won were never seen again!"  
  
"What a wuss," said a voice. A tall man with black hair tied in a high ponytail and tattoos along his arms, wearing a bullet proof vest and black pants, cracked his knuckles, "if you don't want her, I'll take on her and show her the true meaning of dancing." and with that, he pushed his way through the crowd toward the stage.  
  
"Come on, Heat. Let's look for something else to do," Shorty said as she dragged me out of the tent again.  
  
While walking around the carnival, looking for another ride or gaming stand, I noticed a strange, gigantic robot in the middle of the carnival. Call me crazy, but I could've sworn I saw that head following us everywhere we turn. My imagination must be getting the best of me. I shook my head and continued to follow Shorty to the next ride. 


	7. Late Nightmare

~ 7 ~ Late Nightmare  
  
It soon got dark and I figured it was best to take Shorty back to the Pizza Parlor before Cutter has another nervous break down. But when I turned around, she was gone.  
  
"Must've headed back herself." I muttered. I looked behind me and saw a stage with a vending machine on the left, a blue dog shaped candy machine in the middle and an Ice Cream sand on the right with a snowman standing behind it.  
  
I shrugged and turned to leave when I heard someone talking.  
  
"Excuse me, Mr. Snowman! Can you play this for me, please!?"  
  
"Of course, little girl."  
  
I turned back to the stage and fell over in shock when I saw Shorty handing an 8-track tape to the snowman who took it and popped it into his AM/FM stereo CD and cassette player.  
  
"Shorty! You trying to get us kicked out!?" I hissed standing in front of the stage.  
  
"Aw, come on, Heat," she whined, "Just one song and then I'll leave. I promise." I sighed and threw my hand over my face.  
  
"Alright," I said, "Just one song and then we're out of here. I don't want Cutter getting on my case again about keeping you out here this late."  
  
Shorty squeeled and ran to the center of the stage as the music started. I took a seat on one of the chairs that were lined up in front of the stage. As the song played, I watched as Shorty started dancing around. Then something strange happened.  
  
Ice Cream and soda began criss-crossing each other from behind Shorty, the ice cream coming from the stand and the soda coming from the vending machine. Half way through the song, the whole stage lit up and the snowman jumped out of the Ice Cream stand and began swaying back and forth on one leg while candy poured out of the dog's mouth like a fountain. I bit my lower lip, hoping this doesn't alert security...it was drawing a crowd though.  
  
Before I realized it, the deserted seats were filled with a mop of cheering people. Shorty's mouse was so energetic, it jumped out of her pocket and began dancing with her. I looked at that towering statue and noticed its eyes were now glowing. There were a couple of guys in black business suits and shades, watching Shorty with no expressions whatsoever (They looked like a couple of stone statues if you ask me). One of them pulled out a cell and dialed a few numbers.  
  
"Shung, sir," the guy said in a deep voice, "You're not going to believe this, but I think we found ourselves another groove-tron dwelling dancer." The guy then hangs up and gives me this look that sent chills down my spine, but I just acted like nothing was bothering me.  
  
When the song ended, the robot's eyes stopped glowing as well as the stage. The candy, soda and ice cream stopped coming out and the snowman went back into the Ice Cream stand, taking the tape out and handing it back to Shorty who went up to retrieve it. Afterwards, the cheering crowd got up and left.  
  
"That was fun!" Shorty squeeled as we headed for the exit of the carnival, "I wish we could do it again soon!"  
  
"Soon? Why not now?" said a voice. Suddenly, a giant hand shot out and grabbed us, leaving only our head and shoulders sticking out as we were lifted off the ground.  
  
"What's going on?" Shorty cried.  
  
"You're askin' me!?" I yelled.  
  
"Shung, sir. That's the one who was dancing on that old abbandoned stage," said the man from Shorty's 10 minute concert.  
  
"So, I was right," said the shadow that was behind him. He walked down the arm, making himself visable in front of the bright moonlight. He was the same guy who tried to kidnap Shorty earlier. He must be that Shung guy the man on the cell was talking to, "And looky here. The guy who burned me is with her, as usual."  
  
Shung bent down to us and rested his arms on his knees. The hand I burnt was wrapped in a bandage as blood seeped through. The sight of it was beginning to freak me out. Shung saw this and grinned sinisterly.  
  
"What's the matter, kid? You hemophobic?" he teased, "the all mighty Fireboy is afraid of a little blood." He then began rubbing his blood- stained wrist on my face, smearing me with blood until I bit him in the wrist. Shung screamed and punched me in the face before he stumbled back, holding his wrist. I felt something dribbling out of my nose and into my mouth, a salty taste on my tounge. Drops of blood fell out of my nose and landed on the silver skin of the robot. I wanted to move my hand to cover my nose, but the robot's grip was so strong, I could barely budge.  
  
"Your bite is worst than the rat's!" Shung snarled, rubbing his bloody wrist.  
  
"He's not a rat!" Shorty snapped. One of the men in black hit her over the head with the handle of a hand gun, leaving her limp and unconscious with blood dribbling down her forehead, making me freak out even more.  
  
"Oh, that is just wrong!" I yelled.  
  
"Believe me, kid," Shung said coldly, "there's more where that came from. A lot more."  
  
I opened my mouth to say something, but Shung turned around and walked up the robots arm, saying, "I'm through here, let's go."  
  
A huge chopper appeared over the robot as people began running in fear. The door under the chopper slid open as a pair of claws dropped out and grabbed the shoulders of the robot, lifting it off the ground, taking Shorty and me with it.  
  
Once inside, the robot dropped us as the men in black grabbed us and threw us into a room with metal walls. One of them pressed three buttons on a remote next to the doorway, causing a fuchia colored, neon wall to appear.  
  
"You kids better get confortable," the guy said, "cause it's going to be a long trip." he then laughed and turned to walk off. I got up and ran towards the doorway only to get knocked to the ground by the amount of power coming from the fuchia colored forcefield.  
  
"This is just great!" I grumbled to myself, "Devo and the other might be wondering where I am while I'm stuck here, waiting to find out what those bastards are going to do to me!"  
  
"Cutter...where are you!? I'm scared!" mumbled a voice. I turned around and looked at Shorty who was trembling everywhere. She was looking pale and there was more blood coming out of her head. The guy must've hit her harder than I thought.  
  
I picked up Shorty and carried her to one of the walls in the room. I sat down and leaned my back against the wall, resting Shorty on my lap. I could hear her whimpering as tears started to stream down her face. I sighed and wiped one of the tears from her cheek with my thumb. After a while, she seemed to have calmed down and stopped trembling. I almost thought she was dead...until I heard her breathing. I sighed with relief and continued to cuddle her as the night wore on. 


	8. Prison Life

~ 8 ~ Prison Life  
  
I didn't know how far the chopper took us or how long I was asleep. All I knew was that I was suddenly hauled off the ground by strong hands as I felt Shorty roll off my lap and on the floor.  
  
"Get up, kid," said a grunted voice, "we're here!"  
  
I rubbed the sleep from my eyes and looked up to see an ugly face glaring at me. I almost yelped and fell on my rump before the man grabbed me and shoved me towards the doorway.  
  
"Whoa, hey! Don't I get a complementary breakfast first?" I sarcastically asked. The guy responded by shoving me to the ground.  
  
"Did you get a good sleep?" Shung asked as he walked towards me. I glared at him for a minute before giving him a cocky grin.  
  
"You suck," I said, getting up and dusting myself off, "you didn't leave any chocolate on our pillow like those luxury hotels Devo told me about. Hell, we don't even have any pillows, let alone a soft bed to sleep in!"  
  
"Loaded with sarcasm, I see," Shung said, "I'm surprised your groove- tron doesn't hurl insults instead of fire. Well, I'll just make sure your room is a little more 'close to home'." He turned and left as the man grabbed me and pushed me towards the door of the chopper.  
  
"Hey! This...thing just bit me!" one of them yelled. Shung stopped as did the man that was dragging me. I could hear him swearing under his breath.  
  
"Well, why don't you knock that rat out like you did the girl and things would go smoothly!" Shung snarled. I then heard the sound of something hitting cotton and another man in black comes out, carrying Shorty with her mouse laying on her chest, stars circling the bump on its head, "There, now that wasn't so hard was it? Let's go."  
  
We left the choper as I looked at this huge building that looked like a mix between a palace and a Goverment office with an "X" in the center of one of the window covered pillars. When we entered the building, the whole room went from light to dark. The lights were on, but very dim.  
  
"Let me go! I wanna go home!" Shorty screamed as she started to wiggle and force her way out of the man's grip.  
  
"Shut up, kid!" He snapped.  
  
"I want Cutter! Where is he!? Where's Heat!?" she screamed. If the guy behind me didn't have a tight grip on me, I'd punch the other guy holding Shorty and get out of here. I just stood there and growled, hearing Shorty calling out Cutter and my name.  
  
"Oh! What is it now!?" Shung snarled. He walked over to the guy carrying Shorty and grabbed her by the collar of her sweater, causing her to scream louder as he raised his hand, "You either shut up or I'll..."  
  
"Cut it out!" I cried, "she's in a coma! Yelling at her isn't going to help!" Shung glared at me and lowered his hand, "The only way you're going to get her to shut up is if you get Cutter and bring him here...that's assuming you kidnapped him as well."  
  
"Fine then, Einstine," Shung grumbled, "What brave soul in this building wants to go get Chef Scar Face and bring him here." The men in black began to protest.  
  
"Oh, hell no! Last time I went there, that guy with the shades tried to turn me into swiss cheese just for fun!"  
  
"Are you nuts!? I'm not going near that cell! It's suicide!"  
  
"I lost my best friend to that cell!"  
  
"ALRIGHT!!! JUST SHUT UP!!!" Shung screamed. The whole hallway was dead silent as he sighed, "There, ya see? No one wants to get near the cell our 'miracle' is in because one of our prisoners loves to torment my employees. Even my bravest and strongets men are scared of him!"  
  
"Please tell me I have to put up with her fussin'!?" the guy carrying Shorty whined. Shung nearly blew his cork.  
  
"You'll be the one fussin' if you don't..."  
  
"Wait!" I yelled, causing Shung to stop before he had a chance to raise his hand, "You want her to calm down, right? I'm the only one who can do that. Let me carry her."  
  
"What're you tryin' to pull, kid!?" the guy straining me snarled, "I bet you're usin' this as an excuse to escape. We're not fallin' for it!" the others nodded in agreement.  
  
"You rather spend the rest of this 'trip' hearing her complain?" I was surrounded by glares. Shung slammed his fist against the wall as the sound echoed through the hallway. He grabbed Shorty and shoved her into my arms.  
  
"I swear, you so much as look back and you'll be in the same condition your girlfriend's in!" Shung hissed.  
  
"Heat?" Shorty mumbled. She was still unconscious and sounding worse than before.  
  
"Take it easy, Shorty. I'm here," I said, "Don't worry. I got everything under control...I hope."  
  
"Very touching," Shung said, desgustingly, he then grabbed my shoulder and started pushing me down the hall, "Get a move on!"  
  
As we continued down the hallway, I looked at Shorty, who was now resting in my arms. After an hour, we stopped in the dungeon near one of the cells. Shung unlocked the prison cell and shoved me in, almost knocking Shorty out of my arms.  
  
"Enjoy your stay." he laughed as I watched them walk off.  
  
"Well, well. Look what the cats finally dragged in," said a voice. I turned around and saw the guy from the carnival looking down at me with taunting smirk, "what you in for, kid? Smacked Ms. Hoochie with your groove-tron?"  
  
"Heat!?" called a voice. I was then glomped by Frida who suddenly jumped out of the shadow and hugged me so hard, I felt like my head was going to fall right off my shoulders.  
  
"H-hey!" I choked, "You mind getting off!? I'd like to breath once in a while. And you're crushing Shorty!"  
  
"Who!?" Frida immediatly got off me and looked at Shorty who's mouse was now so flat, I almost mistook it for a design on her overalls. Shorty's appearance brought up another familiar voice.  
  
"WAH! NOOOO! NOT HER TOO!" Cutter came charging out of the shadow and snatched Shorty out of my arms, and hugged her.  
  
"Um...do you mind? She's not in the best condition to be enjoying a bear hug." I said. Cutter pulled Shorty away from him and his face was as white as her's. I sighed and took Shorty from Cutter and laid her on one of the prison beds near the wall.  
  
"THIS IS A CATASTRAPHY!" he screamed, "if her parents come home and found out what happened to her, I'll never live it down!"  
  
"Oh, will you shuddup!?" the tall guy roared, "It's bad enough I had to hear you complain everytime I threaten to shoot those 'poor innocent people'. The least you could do is have a little attitude!"  
  
"I am not going to be as cold hearted as you are, Strike!" Cutter snapped.  
  
"Did I say I wanted you to be!?" Strike yelled.  
  
"That's enough, both of you!" Frida said, "arguing isn't going to get us anywhere. You're no better than those other prisoners in this dungeon!"  
  
The whole cell was silent. Strike huffed and plopped on the other prison bed as Cutter turned and grieved over Shorty. After about an hour, one of us spoke...and it wasn't pleasent.  
  
"She didn't deserve this..." Cutter grumbled, "she's just a child." Cutter then turned to me, tears wielding up on his face, "It's you...it's all your fault!"  
  
"Whoa, hold the phone here!" I yelled, "I wasn't the one who gave her 20 bucks and told her to go spend it at a carnival without a chaparon!"  
  
"Don't deny it, punk! Things were going fine until you showed up and beat the tar out of that man!"  
  
"Oh, and I suppose you prefere I let Shorty get taken away by some total stranger to be shot full of lead!?"  
  
"THAT'S IT!!!" Cutter shot his hand towards me and water suddenly gusted out of his palm. I yelped and stumbled away from it as it hit the wall near the cell door. I looked at the dent on the wall and back to Cutter who was now breathing angerly with more tears coming out of his eyes, "What's the matter, Fireboy? Can't swim!?"  
  
"Leave him alone, Heat," Frida said, "If you make a move against him, he'll use that as an excuse to get you in trouble."  
  
"Get him into trouble!? He's been nothing BUT a troublemaker ever since Shorty started talking about him!" Cutter said, "Not only did he save her by brute force, but he spoils her rotten and allowed her to get into a situation that brought her here in this condition!"  
  
"What was I supposed to do!?," I yelled, "Being in a chopper full of men who might be armed with every last weapon known to man, I may as well attempt suicide by charging at them with my bare hands!"  
  
"Secret X is possabily the most dangerous organization in the world! And to see someone like you go up and punch one of their assosiates almost makes you one very brave person. But I guess I was wrong. The only think you are to me is a boy who can't even protect his own dirty ass!"  
  
That last sentance popped a vain and I completely lost control, charging at Cutter with my fists on fire. He yelped and moved out of the way of my fists, nearly burning the tip end of his ponytail. From there it was an all out, groove-tron flying fist fight. Frida started screaming at us to get us to stop, but it fell to deaf ear. About five minutes went by and most of the prison was drenched and covered in burnt dents from the fireballs I threw at Cutter. Just then, a shot rang out that got us to stop, the both of us holding each other's throat with one hand holding a ball of water or fire.  
  
"As much as I'd like to see Scar Face get into a fight (for once), I'd really feel much better if I didn't have ten seconds left to live!" Strike, who was holding a smoking hand gun in the air, demanded. I pushed Cutter off of me as the fire in my hand disappeared.  
  
"Well, he started it!" I yelled.  
  
"I don't fuckin' care which one of you started this," Frida said, startling us, "you were both acting like a couple of untamed lions and you nearly got us all killed with your stupid fight! And you know what!? If you two kept fighting like this, one of your shots could've landed on Shorty and kill her before you even realized it! Then who'd be put on blame!?"  
  
We looked at Shorty who was still laying on the prison bed. About ten wet and burnt dents on the wall stood over her and her mouse was in a fetal position, trembling everywhere. I almost went stiff after seeing that. Cutter, on the other hand, gave me a dirty glare before he stomped off into the shadow of the prison and sat in the corner with his head buried in his hands. I looked at Frida who had her hands over her mouth, worried, then I looked at Strike who just laid on his prison bed, chewing on another toothpick like it was tabbacco, acting like he didn't care one bit.  
  
I sighed and sat on the prison bed, resting Shorty's head on my lap. Her mouse laid on her chest as if it was dead, but I can tell it was just as depressed as Cutter was. If only there was someway I can help her recover faster. If there was someone who's groove-tron can heal anything, I could really use it right now... 


End file.
